FOX, NBCUniversal, and Viacom Unveil OpenAP 2.0

Next Iteration Introduces Cross-Publisher Video Marketplace for
Advanced Audience Campaigns on National Linear and Digital Video in
Collaboration with Accenture and FreeWheel

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–lt;a href=”https://twitter.com/search?q=%24VIAB&src=ctag” target=”_blank”gt;$VIABlt;/agt;–FOX, NBCUniversal, and Viacom today unveiled OpenAP 2.0, expanding the
advanced audience platform into a centralized premium video marketplace
with workflow automation for national linear and long-form digital
video, developed in collaboration with Accenture and FreeWheel. This
major development will go live in time for Fall 2019 campaigns.

In a joint statement, Meredith Brace, Executive Vice President of Client
Solutions and Portfolio Marketing, FOX; Krishan Bhatia, Executive Vice
President of Business Operations and Strategy, NBCUniversal; and John
Halley, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Ad
Solutions, Viacom, said: “We’re thrilled to bring to market our
latest iteration of OpenAP, which fundamentally transforms the way that
advertisers can transact to deliver holistic advanced audience campaigns
from start to finish on both linear and long-form digital platforms, in
collaboration with Accenture and FreeWheel. OpenAP was the TV industry’s
first open platform for cross-publisher audience targeting and
independent third-party posting, and this is a major step in furthering
our mission to bring the industry together to make audience buying more
transparent, consistent, and effective.”

With OpenAP 2.0, buyers will now be able to build consistent,
cross-publisher audience segments for both national linear and long-form
digital video, and submit orders to activate these segments through a
centralized cross-publisher marketplace. Built in collaboration with
Accenture and FreeWheel, OpenAP 2.0 will be accessible at OpenAP.tv and
via APIs for agency planning systems and approved DSPs. In addition,
OpenAP 2.0 will provide cross-publisher analytics for a unified view of
advanced audience campaigns, with comprehensive pre-campaign performance
projections and post-campaign delivery metrics, including total
unduplicated reach, overall tCPM, and total audience impressions.

“Advanced targeting, transparency and simplicity are critical to our
clients. OpenAP enables advertisers access to advanced audiences at
scale with the highest quality TV content available across screens. FOX
and the other members of OpenAP are committed to driving open standards
that are essential to the success of our brand and agency partners,” said
Marianne Gambelli, President, Advertising Sales, FOX.

“With competition rising in every industry, marketers need new ways
to define their audience and engage viewers across all platforms.
Expanding OpenAP can help turn that vision into a reality. Krishan
Bhatia and a group of industry leaders are creating solutions that will
benefit the entire advertising ecosystem, and that should be commended,” said
Linda Yaccarino, Chairman, Advertising and Client Partnerships,
NBCUniversal.

“We’re incredibly proud of the pioneering work that our team and
OpenAP partners have accomplished in unifying and standardizing the
television business. OpenAP’s evolution into a transactional platform is
intended to simplify activation for our brand and agency partners, which
we believe will significantly impact the scale of advanced advertising
moving forward. We couldn’t be more excited,” said Sean Moran, Head
of Ad Solutions, Viacom.

Launched in 2017, OpenAP was founded to make it easier for advertisers
to reach unified custom audience segments across TV publishers by
delivering consistency and standardization with secure segment sharing
and independent measurement. Members of OpenAP include FOX,
NBCUniversal, Viacom, and Univision.

About OpenAP

Founded by a consortium of television publishers and operated by a
leading, neutral third-party auditor, OpenAP simplifies audience-based
media buying. Within our respective companies, we are at the forefront
of the evolution of TV, creating advanced, data-driven products that
help advertisers move beyond basic demographics and into advanced
audience targeting. However, while demand for audience targeting has
grown significantly, adoption has been limited by the industry’s failure
to make audience buying as transparent and easy as traditional
guarantees. OpenAP was our response to a clear industry need that
required collective action. For more information, visit www.openap.tv.

About Fox Corporation

Fox Corporation produces and distributes compelling news, sports and
entertainment content through its iconic domestic brands including: FOX
News, FOX Sports, the FOX Network, and the FOX Television Stations.
These brands hold cultural significance with consumers and commercial
importance for distributors and advertisers. The breadth and depth of
our footprint allows us to deliver content that engages and informs
audiences, develops deeper consumer relationships and creates more
compelling product offerings. FOX maintains an impressive track record
of news, sports, and entertainment industry success that will shape our
strategy to capitalize on current strengths and invest in new
initiatives. For more information about Fox Corporation, please visit www.FoxCorporation.com.

About NBCUniversal

NBCUniversal is one of the world’s leading media and entertainment
companies in the development, production, and marketing of
entertainment, news, and information to a global audience. NBCUniversal
owns and operates a valuable portfolio of news and entertainment
television networks, a premier motion picture company, significant
television production operations, a leading television stations group,
world-renowned theme parks, and a suite of leading Internet-based
businesses. NBCUniversal is a subsidiary of Comcast Corporation. To
learn more, visit: www.nbcuniversal.com.

About Viacom

Viacom creates entertainment experiences that drive conversation and
culture around the world. Through television, film, digital media, live
events, merchandise and solutions, our brands connect with diverse,
young and young at heart audiences in more than 180 countries. For more
information on Viacom and its businesses, visit www.viacom.com.
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and LinkedIn (linkedin.com/company/viacom).